


The world might be ending

by I_am_a_color_13



Category: The Punisher (TV 2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Post-Canon, Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, F/M, He's just really soft in this, I guess it's sort of angst with a happy ending, POV Frank, also I don't know how to write short stuffs anymore, although everything is relative because the world is full of zombies, heavily features Frank as an adoptive dad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-28
Updated: 2018-06-28
Packaged: 2019-05-29 13:18:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,876
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15073985
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/I_am_a_color_13/pseuds/I_am_a_color_13
Summary: "Zombies.Of all things it had to be zombies.He remembers watching movies about these creatures with his kids and now they’re here. they’re real. Who the fuck would have thought that could ever happen? Dead people going around eating people.Just fucking peachy."Based on the prompt "Zombie apocalypse AU; Frank the adoptive dad." mixed with "Post infinity war; chaos in NYC. Karen and Frank find each other." (without the Infinity War bit). I guess this says it all, enjoy!





	The world might be ending

**Author's Note:**

  * For [evil bunny wolf (evil_bunny_king)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/evil_bunny_king/gifts).



> This is written fo @devilbunnyking on tumblr (aka evil bunny wolf on here) for the kastle fic/art exchange. The prompts you gave me were really nice and got me really inspired so thank you! I hope you like this <3  
> I haven't had much time to edit it so it still feels a bit weak to me, and I apologise if there is any spelling misgake or something like that, but I've really enjoyed writing it! Especially the adoptive dad aspect, I loved that.  
> I'm not great at world building so if my version of the apocalypse doesn't make much sense I apologise but it's the apocalypse anyway! Also I'm sorry if you were hoping to see zombies in this but they're only mentioned

Zombies.  
Of all things it had to be zombies.  
He remembers watching movies about these creatures with his kids and now they’re here. they’re real. Who the fuck would have thought that could ever happen? Dead people going around eating people. Just fucking peachy.

It started only a few months ago, almost four now, and spread like wildfire. It went so fast, they were left with almost half of their population dead – but most of it still walking around- and the other traumatized and scrambling for food, shelter, water...anything, in two months. The situation was of course even worse in big cities where you couldn’t escape anything and where shops were closing down really fast leaving most inhabitants without resources.

  
The first cases were registered in Florida and rapidly spread around before a new crisis started around Seattle. That’s when the country realized that the situation was really bad. It was happening on most of the American continent at that point, the rest of the world mostly untouched. So far. Last he heard, some zombies had showed up in Australia.

Frank had been away from New-York when it started. But he came back as soon as things started to get seriously bad closer to the city. To make sure that they were alright; Curtis, the Liebermans and of course, Karen.

  
David had contacted him right away saying that he was safe with his family in a house in the mountains in New-England, a safe place on the sides of a small village. It was a good refuge as so far most isolated places were still untouched by the virus and were meant to stay this way longer than big cities like New-York.

David, of course, had realized how bad the situation was very quickly and had started packing things up, stocking resources and food and so on. He was insisting that Frank join them as soon as possible but Frank would never leave New-York without making sure that all the people he knew were safe and untouched. A few weeks ago, Curtis had found his way, going to live with some family in Canada. He had managed to cross the frontier and escape soon enough to an untouched region.

  
But there was still Karen.

\---------------------------------------

Frank hasn’t seen her since he arrived to New-York. And before he left, they had met a few times, then stayed in touch as he took care of some things. He had managed to call her when he arrived, before the lines were cut two weeks ago. She didn’t want to leave New-York then, too busy working on something.

She had agreed that if things got too dangerous or if too much of the city was closed down or occupied by zombies, she’d go away with him. So he had had to wait. But it has now been two weeks without news of her, without knowing if she was alright, busy, hurt, tired, sick or fine.

  
Two weeks of being worried sick without getting news about her and wanting nothing more than to grab her and to run away to a safe place where nothing could touch her, where he could rest knowing that she was okay. And with him.

Goddamn it, he misses her so much. He had been away from New-York for longer than he had planned and now he hasn’t seen her for almost three months. They had stayed without seeing each other for longer than that but before he left the city they had started seeing each other more regularly. She had become a regular presence in his life.

And now that the world is ending, everything in him screams that he should be by her side. That he belongs there.

 

Technically, he could just run and find her at her apartment, he thinks. He could fight off any zombie in his way. They usually come out at night but you never know when someone might finish their mutation or if some of them might just be walking around.

  
As he cleans up around his apartment, trying to keep himself busy and to find some sort of routine to help him think while a cartoon is going on on the TV, Frank is reminded that it isn’t so simple now, he can’t just run and grab and leave. Not now that he isn’t alone.

Not now that there is Maddie.

\---------------------------------------

Maddie is 6 years old. She is tall for her age, her jet black hair is always in a long ponytail with a butterfly hoops, a purple one to match the glasses that circle her slanting eyes. She is an orphan. And she is living with him now.

The glitch in his plan. The one thing he couldn’t have planned when he came back to New-York. He hadn’t taken care of a child in years and suddenly, right when the apocalypse was happening, right when he needed to get away, life threw Maddie on his way.

It’s not like he had a choice really. There was nothing else to do but take care of her. He would have been a monster not to. And Frank knew he wasn’t good, nowhere near it but to leave a child on its own to survive would have been like turning his back on his humanity and so he had done the right thing.

  
He looks at where Maddie is sitting, her eyes focused on the screen, her lips moving along the lyrics of the song playing in the cartoon. His heart soften at the sight. Yes, it has been hard to take care of her, to take her in, to build a trust between them but it has also been good. And even if it makes finding Karen harder, he doesn’t regret it.

\---------------------------------------------

Maddie came into his life a few days after his last phone call with Karen. He had been without news from her for 3 days and had decided to set his plan in motion. Grab Karen and go. Maybe it was too soon, maybe she wouldn’t accept to leave New-York yet, but he had to try, he had to do something.

  
When he left his apartment in the morning, he noticed that his next door neighbor’s door was slightly opened and what sounded a lot like someone crying was coming out of it. He usually wouldn’t even have thought about going inside and disturbing the people living there since the sound of someone crying was a very common thing these days.

  
He started to walk past the door when he remembered how he had heard sobs coming from the apartment the former evening. A child’s sobs. And no adult voice soothing the kid as usual or pestering her for doing something wrong. His neighbors had been living there for a while and he had already figured out that his room was next to their little girl’s. The walls weren’t thick so he often heard her.

He knew the parents were good and wouldn’t let their girl cry for no reasons. Yesterday, he’d just assumed she’d done something bad.  
If she was crying again, during the day, then something was wrong.

Images of people no longer human walking around the streets crossed his mind. Maybe something had happened to her parents. Which would explain the open door as no one was there to check if it was locked properly.

  
Frank was standing there wondering what to do when the crying stopped. He waited a few minutes but heard no voices in the apartment. No parents walking around or talking to their child, yet he knew they never would’ve left her alone like that. His mind racing, he opened the door slightly and when no one came to see why he was coming in, he walked up to the living room, the first door in the corridor.

  
He understood quickly that the situation was probably as bad as he had imagined. That the crying had been despair. The little girl was lying down on the sofa, clutching on a teddy bear, her eyes red and puffy even as they were closed. She seemed to have fallen asleep, or at least ran out of tears, from exhaustion.

  
He took a few steps across the room and quickly assessed the situation. The coffee table in front of the girl was covered with a few packages of snacks and some rests of fruits that seemed to be a few days old. The apartment was cold and most of the lights were out.

  
He got closer to the sofa and her sleep must have been light despite the exhaustion because she woke up right away when the floor creaked. Her eyes shot wide open, full of expectations but when they settled on Frank they filled with disappointment and the little girl’s mouth opened in a little “o” shape.

He stayed still for a few seconds not knowing what to do or how explain what he was doing here.

  
She sat down and backed to the corner of the sofa, her eyes wary now that the initial reaction had worn off. “What are you doing here?” she asked.

  
He decided to sit down on the ground to be at her level and explained that he was her next door neighbor who had heard her cry yesterday and this morning, that he wanted to make sure she was alright. She seemed to recognize him and relaxed, explaining that she liked hearing him walk next door when she was trying to sleep sometimes.  
“Oh ok,” he said, “Do you...where are your parents, girl?”

  
She held on tighter to her teddy bear and looked to the door and Frank realized that she probably had been staying on the sofa for a while waiting for her parents to come home, which could only mean one thing.  
“My mom is gone to do groceries,” she explained. And she would probably never come back if she hadn’t been there since yesterday evening.

  
“When did she leave?” he asked.

The girl made an effort to count something in her head “I think it was two nights and days ago. I’ve been waiting a long time. She said she would bring food but she hasn’t so I’ve been eating my snacks but now I don’t have anything left and I am really hungry. And I don’t understand why she isn’t back yet. I’ve been waiting a long time!”

  
Frank passed a hand against his face, his heart aching for the little girl “Yeah, you have. It’s been really long I bet. And hard.” She nodded and although he already expected the answer to his next question, he had to ask it. “What about your dad? Where is he?”

  
The child looked down at her stuffed animal “Oh...Daddy’s been gone a long time now. I can’t even count how long it’s been since he left.” Which probably meant he had been taken by the zombies a few weeks ago and was either eaten or turned into a zombie. Like his wife.

  
And Frank stayed in front of the sofa as the little girl hugged her stuffed bear and he looked at her and knew that he couldn’t leave her. He just couldn’t, he had something to do but this girl has been on her own for two days trying to live off of cereal bars. She was alone and weak. In danger.

While he hesitated about what to do with her, she sat up on the sofa before getting off of it and standing in front of him. “Do you have any food, please, sir?”

  
The look in her eyes told him that despite her soft voice and her calm behavior, she was desperate inside. She was a kid and she was starving and so he told her that yes, he had food at his place. She said that she’d like it if he wanted to share it with her because she needed to eat so she could stay strong to wait for her mom.

Frank didn’t know how to the explain the situation. He couldn’t lie to her so he stood up and started walking out of the living room. The girl quickly caught up with him and took a hold of his hand all the way to his apartment.

  
He quickly prepared something for her while she was sitting on one of two of his kitchen chairs. She observed everything around her and stayed silent even when he brought her the plate and he sat in front of her while she ate. She was fast, trying to eat everything at once and he had to tell her to slow down so she wouldn’t choke on her food.

When she had finished her plate, she thanked him and asked if he could bring her back to her apartment so she could sleep there, holding up her two arms to get lifted. The girl had time to tell him her name, Maddie, before falling asleep on his shoulder.

  
And so Frank found himself laying the child on her bed as she held on to his arm. He sat next to her bed and knew for sure as he looked at her that he couldn’t leave her after this, not even at some shelter. She was holding on to him like he was her lifeline or something and goddamnit, this ruined everything because he couldn’t go and run for Karen anymore.

The streets were no place for a little girl no matter how good he was at fighting, it was just too dangerous to do the whole walk up to Karen’s flat and he would never leave her on her own again. She needed to be taken care of.

\--------------------------------------

It has now been two weeks during which they mainly stayed at her apartment since that’s where all her toys and books and movies are, which makes it easier for him to keep her occupied and distracted.

As much as she was quiet and almost silent the first day, she quickly opened up, clearly comfortable with him and became immensely curious about his life, kept asking questions about everything. She now insists on following him everytime he goes back to his apartment to make sure he comes back with her and once there, she asks dozens of questions about every object or piece of furniture or book or anything that comes to her attention.

He notices that ever since she told him about her parents being gone she hasn’t asked about them, nor mentioned them again. But she often gets silent and stares into space. He wonders if she’s already understood what has happened to them. Not the details but the fact that they’re not coming back.

Sadly, Frank doesn’t know what to do to reassure her, to make her feel better because what is there to make her feel better about ? The fact that she’s an orphan ? That her parents are either dead or eaten or zombies ? The fact that she is growing up in a world ravaged by a deadly virus and that she’ll probably never get to live a normal life ? That there’s no telling if the human race will survive this or for how long ? The fact that the only person left to take care of her is him ? How does he explains himself to her ? She doesn’t’ even know his real name. He’s Pete to her, her neighbor and that’s it.

  
He has to take her out with him a few times, to see if he can find something more to eat in a closed shop or in one of the shelters that are still standing. She holds on to him the whole way there, walking by his side and never letting go.

They make an odd pair, him, all in dark attire, scary, bearded and curly haired, and her, little asian girl reaching his waist, in a blue coat and butterfly adorned ponytail, her hand holding his tight, her eyes checking everything around her.

Their physical differences doesn't stop people at the shelter from thinking she is his daughter. Despite being recent, their bond is strong and can be seen in the way she is holding his hand so tight or the way he keeps brushing hair out of her face and how she leans her head against his leg when they are waiting.

It is weird to think that he has only found her a week ago seeing at how close they already are. Not by choice but by necessity and somehow it works.

  
They go out together a few more times. On one of their outing, he notices that she starts behaving like him in the street as they walk. Observing him, she starts checking every street corner, her back and the doors on their way. He is saddened by the thought that she lives in a world where such behavior is required of a kid but it reassures him to know that she is more ready to go out in the streets than he expected.

  
Frank then starts to see how he could reach Karen’s neighborhood with Maddie deciding to try his best to at least find her, check on her. No matter what Karen says, he has decided to bring the girl with him and take her to the mountains, to live with the Liebermans. She needs to be away from New-YorK. He wants Karen to come with them but if she doesn’t, he’ll come back for her. Stay with her until the end.

He has thought a long time about what to do with Maddie but he is sure now that her parents are not coming back. He was worried that he might not be able to defend himself properly if she was with him and that she might not be able to walk all the way to Karen’s. Still, trying was better than doing nothing.

\-------------------------

One evening, as they’re eating dinner, he tells Maddie about his plans of leaving the city and about his friend living on the other side of the city that he needs to find, that he needs to protect so they can get away and leave New-York.

She asks him,« Are you sure you’re going to find your friend ? »  
« I’ll do my best, » he assures her.  
« But what if she’s not okay ? What if she’s like the people on the news ? »  
« I …,”-truth was he refused to think about this possibility, didn’t even let his mind go near it because that would be the worse, worse than death, worse than anything really. Just hearing her mention it tear his inside apart and makes him breathless. His voice is weak when he replies « I don’t know... »

  
She stays silent then, « ...I’m never going to see them again, right ? »  
He stops eating, sensing the change of tone in her voice,« Who ? »  
« My parents. they’re gone, right ? »

Her voice is so small and she looks so small and he hates this so much, hates this whole fucking messed up world that took everything away from him and is now taking everything else away from everyone, without sparing anyone, not even kids. He forces himself to stay quiet for Maddie, to not let his emotions show except his care for her « Yes, sweetheart....sadly yes .»  
« So...I don’t have a family no more ? »

Her fingers reach out to hold his own really tight and he doesn’t reply. Can’t bring himself to say the words which is ridiculous because he has done many things more difficult than this. Or so he thought. Maybe it rings too close to home. Telling someone all their family is dead and that they are alone. And she’s only six, only six and he remembers his own kids at that age.

She adds with a little voice, « That’s awfully sad, isn’t it ? » Sometimes she talks in a very grown up way which is terribly endearing but this time it only makes the situation worse. He swallows hard, speaks up, his voice rough in his hears.  
« I don’t have a family either little one, they’re all...gone too. It is sad, yeah. »  
« Because of the people on the news?” She never says the word zombies. Frank wonders if it’s because it’s hard for a kid to not see them as people or if it’s just a Maddie thing.

« No, ...no, it was a long time ago now. Way before the zombies. »  
«Oh ok...But you have your friends. At least, the woman she’s there, and the ones in the mountains. In a cartoon, I watched it this morning, they say friends can be like family if that’s all you have left.»  
« Yes, that’s very right, Maddie. »

He suddenly remembers a conversation with David in their basement about Karen and family.  
As if reading his mind, Maddie says, «We are going to find her, don’t worry. »  
And he wants to cry, he honestly wants to. Because of the sound of her voice, the strength and the sadness in it, how when realizing that they both didn’t have any family left she wanted to make sure he could find his own…His throat tightens and to avoid getting more emotional, he asks her to finish her plate.

\--------------------------------------

They leave two days later, really early, zombies being known for not being out around that time.

Maddie is still a bit sleepy and tired when they leave his building, bags on their back, but she doesn’t complain. They are about halfway through their trip when he starts noticing that she is dragging her feet on the pavement.

At this point, they’ve been walking for more than 3 hours, stopping regularly to drink. She has been carrying her backpack and her coat and her lips are tightly closed to make sure she doesn’t complain. He can see her determination, how she doesn’t want to slow him down and wants to walk like him. Without a word, he stops in his track and puts his own bag on his front. She watches him with surprise as he opens his arms to her. As she stands still, not sure of what she has to do, he gets down in front of her, his back to her and signal her to climb on it.

When she is positioned, he gets up and starts walking. She stays silent then let out a thank you in his ear.  
“It’s alright, sweetheart. Just lay your head down.”  
He knows carrying her this way only makes them more vulnerable if they ever get attacked but he decides to take the risk. After all, the streets are always dangerous these days.

They walk a few more hours, avoiding the closed areas around Karen’s neighborhood – which is almost circled by closed areas-, and any sight of fight or zombies. Maddie starts walking again after a while and they finally reach Karen’s building at the end of the afternoon.

They stop at the angle of the street facing the building, taking in the man at the door standing tall who seems to be guarding the place.

This kind of guard isn’t an unusual sight these days in New-York. A lot of people have decided to do stand guard to make sure that no unknown people who might be carrying the virus took refuge in their home, letting people homeless after they had to flee their apartment.

Frank doesn’t think Karen likes that idea very much but if all her neighbors agreed on it she probably has no choice. Sadly, that it means they can’t get into the front door and have to use the fire escape on the side. This wouldn’t be a problem on his own but there’s Maddie.

She surprises him by suggesting aloud that they should use the fire escape.  
“Can you climb it ?”  
“Can you ?” she teases, making him smile.  
“I used to do climbing and gymnastics, Pete, I’m stronger than I look. I can take on a ladder, don’t worry.”  
He frowns, “That’s a big one, though.”  
“It’s mostly a stair,” she replies.

Encouraged by her determination, they go around the block to get to the bottom of the ladder.  
Franks pulls it down and lifts Maddie up so she can grab the first bar and, sure enough, she hoists herself up, grabbing another bar before even putting her feet down. Faster than he imagined, she’s on the first platform.  
She summons him up and tells him to be less slow as they climb their way up.

He grunts, “I have the backpacks. I can’t be as fast as you, girl.”  
“It’s because you’re too big,Pete.”  
He looks up to find her smiling and if she hadn’t just criticized his weight, he might have smiled in return. “Too big ?”  
“Yes,” she replies very matter-of-factly, “It’s a disadvantage when climbing to be too big. Also, I can jump and you can’t, you’re too heavy.”

It’s funny to have someone in his life who thinks him unable to do a physical stunt.  
“Alright, I didn’t come here to get criticized on my weight. Now shut it and climb.”

They don’t manage to get all the way up to Karen’s floor because somehow there’s a bunch of crap - a couch, a tv, and some junk pieces of metal - stuck on the platform of the floor below hers. Frank looks inside the window at the floor they’re stuck at.

After making sure that the apartment seems empty, he manages to open the window and asks Maddie to stay outside so he can make sure there is no one inside. Or anything gross that she shouldn’t see. Thankfully, the place is quite clean and empty. Karen’s neighbor must have been smart enough to flee the city. Frank gets Maddie inside and they cross the apartment before climbing the stairs all the way up to Karen’s flat. His heart is beating faster now that they’re finally getting closer to seeing her.

He knocks as soon as he arrives at the door. Doesn’t wait for a reply before knocking again. Even Maddie joins with enthusiasm now that they’re finally at Karen’s. They knock and knock several times, but no reply comes. Not even the sound of someone walking inside the apartment.

Frank pounds on the door again, his mind racing because goddamnit, she was supposed to be here. She should be inside, what is she doing outside? Too focused on making his way to her, he hasn’t stopped to consider the possibility that she might not be at home. Which is so fucking stupid of him. Being outside is too dangerous these days and he’s starting to lose it because now there’s a huge possibility that she got attacked maybe even bitten and he can’t..take ..it

He only notices how tense he has become and how frozen he is when he feels Maddie’s hand sliping inside his and stroking the top of his hand with her thumb.  
Her voice rings clear to his ears « I’m sure she’s alright, Pete. Maybe she’s just at work ? ».

He doesn’t have the energy to explain to her that most jobs are closed nowadays that the amount of people who actually have a job to go to is pretty scarce. But she’s right, maybe Karen’s working somewhere. She has told him she was looking into setting up shelters with her colleagues using the Bulletin’s offices. Or maybe she’s visiting a friend. There are many possibilities that explain why she isn’t at home without involving her death and he needs to focus and keep that in mind.

His mind is clear and his breathing even when Maddie speaks up again. “Do you want to wait in front of the door because we could go back to the empty apartment to watch the streets and see if she’s coming back ?”  
“That’s a good idea, that’s a real good idea. Let’s go.”  What a smart kid.

\---------------------------------

They observe the street for the rest of the day and he’s really touched by how seriously Maddie is taking what she calls their "mission". Standing still at the window, holding his hand. Asking for details about Karen’s appearance to make sure she can spot her.

After a while of observing the street, she starts searching around the apartment and Frank lets her do it, thinking it is better for her to find something to distract herself rather than stay at the window looking for someone she doesn’t even know. He doesn’t think there is anything dangerous in the apartment anyway and she’s smart enough to stay away from the knives that could be in the kitchen. She surprises him when she comes back with a small pair of binoculars so he “can spot his friend from a longer distance ! And be reassured quickly!” He ruffles her hair and lets her sit on his lap hoping that wherever Karen is she will come back before nightime.

Luck is with him as he spots her silhouette around half seven. When he sees her on the other side of the street, relief washes over him as he finally puts his mind to rest. She’s alive.

He leans his head against the side of the window, staring at her. She seems to be doing well, no visible injuries or limp, no distressed look on her face but instead a determined and slighty tired one.

She is there and she’s not dead and she’s not a zombie and she’s so close, so close; he can feel the pull, the desire to get to her, to make sure that’s she’s okay from up close, to hear her voice, and see her and hold her.

Maddie notices the difference in his attitude and leans forward to see what’s happening, asking if Karen is there and letting out a little scream of excitement when he points at the woman.  
“Oooh that’s her?! She looks really nice, and look, Pete, she’s alright! She doesn’t even have blood on her coat so she’s fine. See, Pete? She’s fine!!” She shakes his arm “We made it! We found her and she’s fine!!”

She seems so relieved at the thought that Karen - someone she’s never met but who matters so much to him and therefore seems to matter to her - is fine, that Frank caresses the side of her face, his throat tightening with emotion.  
“Yeah, we made it, girl.”  
“I knew it,” she whispers as she hugs him tight.

Holding Maddie in his arms as he watches Karen crossing the street and heading for the building, Frank feels that things are finally starting to look up and that they might get out of it in the end, they might just be alright.

He waits to make sure that Karen is in her apartment before going up the stairs with Maddie. This time, he knocks softly on the door and he hears Karen walking to the door, asking from the other side who is there. Smart girl, he thinks.  
“Karen, it’s me.”

There’s no need to say anything more, the door is flung open and suddenly, finally, she’s standing in front of him and his mind goes on a Karen overload, registering the way her blue eyes scan his face, the way her mouth is slightly open, how her brows are high on her forehead, the way her fingers are tight on the door, how her chest rises with each breath, the color of her skin, her hair falling on her shoulder...

He doesn’t know if they stay there standing and staring at each other for two or ten or thirty seconds, maybe a minute but at the same time, they take a step towards each other and a second later she’s there, in his arms. He buries his face in her neck, his hands wide open and flat on her back as she holds on to his waist and back. He can feel every breath she takes against his chest and every breath she lets out in the crook of his neck.

He hadn’t realized how his body had been aching for her, how it wasn’t just his mind that was missing her and now, he never wants to let go. It’s the end of the world out there but if they hold on to each other, it might just be alright. He runs his hands up her back to rest on her neck before leaning back and cupping her head with his hands. He can feel her thumb resting on the sides of his waist, sending shivers up his spine before she rests her head against his, smile creeping up her lips.

“Oh Frank, I’m so relieved”  
“Me...”  
« Frank ? His name is Pete !”

Oh, that’s right, he thinks - as if coming up from a dream-, Maddie is here.  
“Are you sure that’s your friend ? She doesn’t even know your name.” adds the little girl looking at Karen.  
And if he wasn’t so overwhelmed and relieved to have her in his arms, close to him, safe and well, Frank probably would’ve laughed at the face that Karen makes when she looks behind him and sees Maddie for the first time

« Uh...I’m..who are you ? » she manages to ask Maddie.  
But the girl only wants to know one thing and turns to him, « Why is she calling you Frank ? »  
« It’s complicated.”  
“But it’s not your name.”  
“It is, in a way,” he sighs.

It wasn’t the right thing to say, he understands as her face closes up and she stares at him.“Did you...lie to me ?”  
He gets down to her level as Karen watches them and takes in the fact that he is here with a kid, a kid that seems to know him very well and that he obviously cares for.

He takes Maddie’s hand and strokes it, looking her in the eyes, “I didn’t lie, I never lied to you. I just have two names, alright ? Frank is my first one and Pete is my second one. Frank is the old one and Pete is the new one. Karen” ,– he points at her and she waves still looking a bit shocked -, “ knows me as Frank and you know me as Pete, but I’m the same person and I promise I haven’t lied to you.” She seems to accept this explanation but she is still frowning when he’s done talking.

A that moment, Karen opens the door entirely “You two should come in”.

Maddie walks in first before waving Frank in with her hands. He closes the door behind him and turns to Karen who’s looking at him as if trying to solve something.  
“What is it?” he whispers  
“Why are you whispering?” she replies  
“I don’t know you looked at me like I was ...odd.”  
“You showed up with a kid, Frank. That’s quite odd.”  
“Oh yeah, that’s Maddie”, he explains pointing to the little girl who’s walking around the living room, watching everything.  
“Maddie, who’s Maddie?” insists Karen.  
“She’s,... it’s complicated as well.”

Right then, the girl walks up to him and takes his hand forcing him to look down and he sees her pouting. “What is it? Why you’re making this face?”

She doesn’t seem to want to talk to him in front of Karen so she turns her face sideways. He sighs and bends down to her level despite the curious look on Karen’s face, so she can speaks in his ear “I can’t find the dog.”  
“What?”  
“I thought she had a dog but she doesn’t.” She seems crushed by this information.  
“Why on earth did you think she had a dog?”  
“My best friends has a dog and so does my mom’s best friend so I thought yours had one too but she doesn’t.”  
“No, she doesn’t. I’m glad we settled this. Is that a problem?”  
“Well,” replies the little girl, “I would’ve loved to see a dog but it’s alright, I guess.”  
“Well, if it’s alright, go sit somewhere while I catch up with Karen, alright?” He takes her coat and backpack of off her.

She walks away to sit on the couch, while Karen walks him to the kitchen and immediately starts cooking, “You’re staying for dinner.”  
It’s not a question and so he simply nods.  
“Anything I can do to help?”  
“Yeah, I don’t have much left but you can find some frozen vegetables in the freezer.”

They start cooking in silence, Karen pointing at the different things that Frank needs. A few minutes pass that seem a bit surreal, as if things weren’t going the right way but he doesn't really know why, before she puts her knife down.

“Are you going to explain yourself or do I have to interrogate you, Frank?”  
He looks up from the pan and she motions to Maddie sitting on the couch.  
“Who is she? Why are you two together? Where have you been all this time! I was worried sick Frank and now you’re back and I am so glad to see you, you have no idea” ,- if the relief she feels is anything like his then she’s wrong-, “but there’s a kid with you and..it’s just really unexpected so I think I deserve an explanation.  
He takes a deep breath. “Yeah, I get it. I still can’t quite believe this is my life either, you know? But you’re right, I’m gonna give you an explanation.”

He tells her everything. How he was planning on finding her but that several neighborhood between his and hers got closed making it harder to walk up there or even use a car. How he had finally everything planned out but found Maddie. How he couldn’t leave her, how he just made the right choice and took care of her. How he adjusted his plans to fit Maddie and how they finally walked up here and arrived on her doorstep.

When he’s done, he turns to face her and she is leaning on the counter, blue eyes looking over at Maddie before turning to him “That’s one hell of a story.”  
“Yeah, well I guess that’s what happens when the world seems to be ending. Although, I’ve seen crazier as far as stories go.”  
“It’s not.”  
“What?”  
“Ending, it’s not. It can’t be.” She crosses her arms.

He shrugs “If you say so.”  
“I’m not naive, Frank, I know most of us will die, have already died because of it. But I don’t believe this is the end of humans. And even if all of us die, I don’t think it’s going to be in the next months or so, or even years. We’re sticking around.”  
“I don’t have anything to argue about that, I just think about it day by day. No need to think too far ahead, you know?”

He joins her at the counter, his elbow touching her arm. “I’m not really thinking. I’m hoping,” she says.  
He hums. “What were you doing while I was …”  
“...adopting a kid?” she asks, “What? Don’t look at me like that, it’s basically what you did!” she exclaims with a smile, “Look at you. Frank Castle. Mass murderer adopting little orphans to save them from zombies.”  
“Very funny, Karen,”he grunts.

She goes back to her frying pan and while stirring the vegetables, she finally answers his question.

The Bulletin is still somewhat running. Not publishing anything since most print ran out of business and internet isn’t always working. But they’re collecting informations, data, testimonies. For future article or just for history or maybe simply because it feels awful to sit there and not do anything while things happen. As she starts talking, he remembers that Edison, her boss, died soon after the beginning of the virus. And that she would probably feel awful if she gave up on her work when he’s been such an important person in her life. Her mentor and friend.

  
He focuses back on what she’s saying as she explains that she soon realized that people needed to get together to survive and so she teamed up with a few colleagues and friends to set up a shelter in the office. They’ve been running it for two weeks now, trying to give shelter to people traveling or homeless or simply looking for company. They try to collect food as well. It's really hard but it's still going. She doesn't know how long it'll stay up but they're trying at least. He nods his approval. He expected nothing less from her.

“I just couldn’t sit there and do nothing,” she says, “I needed to do something with and for people. And maybe I was too scared of what would happen to me if I just stayed on my own, as a recluse in my little apartment. Maybe I was looking for company and comfort too. But it feels good to be useful, to see that you’re making a change in people’s life, that you’re helping.”

And all of this is just so Karen that he can’t help but reach over to stroke her cheek with his thumb and pull a strand of hair behind her hair. She leans slightly into his touch and he thinks that as much as she’s spent her days helping people and organizing all of this, it must have been really hard, she must be exhausted and she must have felt lonely when she came back home and she wasn’t sure that the people she loved were safe.

He doesn’t dare to ask about her family or her friends and she doesn’t bring up the subject. Maybe she doesn’t have any answers to give him. He hopes that whoever she cares about in this world is safe so that Karen doesn’t have to lose anyone else.

\---------------------------------------

Maddie falls asleep after they have dinner, from the exhaustion of the day. He lifts her up in his arms and she rests her head on his shoulder completely unaware of what’s happening as he discusses with Karen their sleeping plans. He wants to put her to bed downstairs, in the empty apartment where they have already laid out their stuffs, ready to stay there if Karen didn’t come back this very day. There’s only one bed in Karen’s flat and even with the couch, there’s still three of them.

“Just put her in my bed, she’ll be fine there,” says Karen when he picks Maddie up.  
“I was planning on making her sleep downstairs.” he explains making a frown appears on her forehead.  
“But she’ll be alone down there while we’re here,” says Karen.  
He swallows hard, “No, I..was thinking of staying with her, I don’t want to leave her alone, you know?”  
“And I don’t wan t you to leave me alone, so put her in my bed, please, Frank.”  
“But… there’s only one bed here.” He doesn’t really know why he’s resisting. He doesn’t want to leave her at all not even for one second.  
“Yes, I know. I live here,” she replies.  
“But where will I sleep?”  
She rolls her eyes “Oh I’m sure we’ll find a way Frank! Someone can take the couch...I just..We just found each other again, I don’t want you to go, alright?”

She reaches for his hand and he can’t resist, he never had any chance to resist. As soon as she said no, he knew he wasn’t putting Maddie to sleep downstairs. He’ll probably take the couch while Maddie and Karen sleep together.  
“Okay,” he says, squeezing her hand tight, “We’re staying.”

He walks to Karen’s room, stroking Maddie’s hair while Karen cleans up the dinner table. He has an intense feeling of familiarity raising in his chest, a vague memory of domesticity and family life. Something so natural to him and yet completely new now.

As he puts Maddie under the cover, the little girl wakes up and she whispers a question when he brings the covers up to her shoulders.  
“Which name do you prefer ?”

Understanding that this is something that has probably been bothering her ever since they came in but that she probably didn’t want to ask in front of Karen, Frank sits on the bed next to her.  
“I don’t know, Maddie. I’m used to both.”  
“So Karen is your friend and calls you Frank, right?”  
He nods.  
“Do your other friends call you Frank too ?  
“Yes, they do.”  
“Alright. You can call me Madeleine.”  
“What ?”  
“That’s my real name, my full name but I only let my best friends so you can call me that...if you want.”

He smiles, feeling his heart warm up “Sure, and ...if you want, you can call me Frank.”  
“Ok, I’ll think about it.”  
“Good girl. Sleep tight now.” He presses a kiss to her forehead for the first time, marveling at how quickly this little girl made his way into his heart. He doesn’t know if he should be scared or elated. Right now, he’s mostly overwhelmed.

It must be visible on his face because when he leaves the room, Karen is leaning on the kitchen counter smiling at him. “What is it?” he asks as he walks up to her.  
“That little girl and you really found each other, didn’t you?”  
“Well yeah, she was alone and I could take care of her so...”

She shakes her head.“It’s more than that, Frank. You found each other as...as people, not just out of necessity, you connected. It’s funny but I noticed that you said we instead of I.”  
“What?”  
“When you said “we’re staying” instead of “I’m staying”. It’s small but it’s telling.”  
“Oh.”

There’s a moment of silence and he hesitates before speaking up, but if there’s anyone he can share this thought with, it’s Karen. “It’s kind of funny, you’re right. I barely knew her two weeks ago, she was just the neighbors daughter. I just heard play next door sometimes, you know? And now, I have to think about her whenever I do something or plan something and at first, I was annoyed because she was keeping me from finding you,” she holds his hand when he says that and runs her thumbs over it, “but it’s different now, it’s good, you know? She’s good.”

Karen hums her agreement “What are you going to do with her now?”  
“Bring her to the Lieberman’s house. She needs to get out of here. Quickly.”  
“So there’s really no chance of her family being alive? Anyone?”  
“It’s been two weeks so I think her mother is definitely dead. Same for her father. As for the rest of her family, with phone lines and everything being cut and me having no idea where they might live, I have no way to contact them and let them know that she’s alive. I have to leave a note at her apartment in case they come but I think that that’s it. The world’s too much of a mess right now.”  
“It’s good that you found her then.”  
“Yeah…,” he honestly dreads to think about what might have happened to Maddie had he not found her that day. “At first, I thought I’d leave her at a shelter but now I can’t. I just can’t leave her.”

Karen nods in understanding. “It’s really like you’ve adopted each other. She already responds to you very well, I could see that everytime you two talked or looked at each other. I’m amazed honestly. She even managed to make you laugh during the dinner! I never see you laugh!”  
He shrugs, “It’s just that face she makes, it’s quite funny, it’s not that much, Karen.”  
“You never laughed like that with me.”

Damn it, she’s cute when she puts on that pout. It’s so silly but it feels so good to be talking like this with her.

“You are not a 6 year old girl and I have laughed with you. Stop lying.”  
“I know, I know. I’m just saying not like that. Which shows that she brings something new and nice to your life and what with everything going on, we need everything good we can get. I’m happy for you, Frank.”

He moves so that he is standing in front of her, so that she is the only thing he sees. He can’t hold it in anymore. Not after thinking he might have lost her “I have everything good I can get or want, right now in this apartment.”  
She reaches for his hand, looks up at him with wide eyes, “That’s...”

“I’m serious, Karen,” he adds, voice deep, “It doesn’t get better than you for me. I only got her a few weeks ago and I already can’t imagine myself away from her. So you? Imagine that. It’s been so long.”  
His thumbs are now brushing the base of her neck, his heart beating fast and he can feel hers following a similar rhythm. And he hopes she understands how much he means with these words, how he can’t say the right words at the moment but still has so much to say about how he feels.  
“You get what I mean right?” He has to ask.

There’s a spark of light in her eyes and she quickly kisses him as a reply. Before he has time to do anything, her lips are on his and her hands on him.  
Who knew you could feel so alive when half of the world is made out of dead people eating dead people?

It’s everything he ever imagined kissing Karen would be like -because yes, his mind did go there a few times- and it’s also so much more.

  
They break apart for a second, locking eyes and he think she’s about to speak up but he’s too afraid of what she might say. Not that he expects anything truly bad but any words could break him apart right now, shake him to the core and leave him naked, so he slightly shakes his head. There’s no time for talking. They kiss again.

It’s like finally being able to rest, finally being home and right where you belong after crossing a hellish desert. At the same time, it’s like fire in your veins and lighting inside your guts, it’s like a rush of sugar and it seems to be the same for her because her hands can’t keep still as she presses against him and she leans her head to kiss him better and he loses his balance because she is just so, so overwhelming.

She kisses like someone on a conquest, claiming everything as her own and he is so happy to let her have everything. But he’s not passive in this kiss, he gives as much as he gets, his hands roaming her back, her sides, the top of her thighs. His thumbs traces patterns on her stomach as he holds her waist closer.  
They break the kiss to breathe and she whispers “You’re everything good to me too”.

And he knows that’s not true, not really. Because she could do so much better than him, she really could. And he mostly brought trouble into her life but if she’s willing to give him a chance then maybe, maybe, he can be good to her. He’d do anything. He has trouble breathing.

She raises her hands to hold his head in between them, leveling his eyes with hers and she must have read his mind because she enunciates clearly again “You’re everything good to me. You are. That’s how it is between us. Okay?”. He opens his mouth to reply but she cuts him off “You have me and I have you. Just accept it.”

And as she softly brushes her thumb against his cheek, as she looks at him with those blue eyes that pierce through him, he decides to do it. Accept it. The world is a fucking mess but he’s hers and somehow she’s willing to be his. Fuck it, it’s happening.

\-------------------------------------

Later, they are sited on the couch, knees touching, as they face each other. She’s playing with his fingers as he tries to convince her to come with him and Maddie to the Lieberman’s house.

“I know you said last time I asked that you had work to do, and obviously you're busy with the shelter but how long can you hold it? The situation is even worse now in New-York, Karen. It’s too much. I’m taking Maddie and I don’t want to leave without you.”  
“I have thought about it,” she replies, “At first there was just so much to do but now with almost the whole neighborhood closed, I think I have to give up. It takes me so long to go to the shelter these days. It’s just...I don’t like feeling useless or like I’m quitting.”  
“You’re not quitting Karen, there’s a zombie apocalypse going on out there, for god’s sake. It’s way beyond what any of us can do! You’re saving yourself if you come with me. Please.”

He’s sounding desperate now.  
“I know,” she caresses his cheek, “I know. It’s just that my whole life is here so it’s hard and there’s so much to do. So much. But at this point I think scientists are the only ones who might bring us an answer and they don’t seem to have one yet so my investigating skills don’t seem to be of much use. There are just so many people to help, so much to do but we have literally no means, no help, no ressources. Everything is destroyed. It’s awful, Frank, it’s awful.”

She looks both immensely sad and determined as she says these words. He knows that she is aching for all the people going through hell right now, for all the kids in Maddie’s situation, for all the families ripped apart and the people forced to flee or watch their loved ones perish and transform. At the same time, she’s a fighter, she’s a survivor. She’ll claw her way out of this if she has to. She’ll survive. She’ll do it.

“I want to go with you,” she declares tilting her chin up.  
“Sure?” They both know it’s the right thing to do. It’s the only thing to do really.  
“Yes. I just...I still have a few people to say goodbye too. Never thought I would get so attached to this town. So not right now ok? Give me two days.”  
“Anything as long as I know that we’re getting out of here safe and sound.”

She leans towards him and they rest their heads against one another before she sits back up again. “Okay, so how are we leaving New-York ? Do you want me to find a car? How much stuffs can I take with me? I guess I should start packing now so I can be really efficient, right?”  
“Yeah you could. I can go and check if Maddie’s asleep, usually she doesn’t mind when I move around and she’s sleeping so maybe you can start now if you have too much to do tomorrow. We should probably leave early tomorrow, Maddie and I.”

He starts to stand up and she catches his wrist slowly, shaking her head. Her expression has taken on a darker tone.  
“Frank,” her voice is soft but he feels the vulnerability behind it, “I thought you were...I refused to think about it but it still came up, you know? I thought you might have been...I really didn’t want to even imagine it but...” Her fingers are tight around her wrist.  
“What are you saying Karen?” The look in her eyes is suddenly almost desperate, like she’s trying to tell him something but the words won’t come out.  
“I thought you might’ve become...one of them you know?”  
“One of... ?” He doesn’t know why he wants her to say the word.

She sits straight, holding on to his arm and he understands that she was finally letting go of all her anxiety , of all the fears she had kept inside in the last days, “The zombies!” she exclaimed,“I didn’t have news for so long and you usually always manage to find a way to contact me no matter what. I was so sure you’d come yourself if you couldn’t find any other ways and you didn’t so I thought maybe, maybe the worst had happened...”

She thought he had been turned into a zombie. He was so worried about how she might be doing and how he wasn’t getting any news that he hadn’t thought about how not getting any news of him might distress her as well.

He keeps underestimating how much she cares about him. He knows she would always stand beside him, defend his name, be faithful to him. But to see her care so much about him, be so upset by the idea of him being dead, it does something to him, deep inside.  
“And I know now that it was because of Maddie,” she keeps talking, “but I was so worried this whole time. I’m tired of being afraid that you’re dead, Frank.”  
This woman can really bring him to his knees in a few words. She can really do that.

He sits back down and looks right into her eyes, “Hey, I’m not leaving again, alright? There’s some stuffs I need to pick up at my place but we’ll go together once you’re packed. I’m not leaving you, never again. I ...I also thought you were...or that you might have been...gone” His voice breaks on the last word and she leans forwards to hug him tight.  
“From now on, we’re staying together,” she says in his ear.  
“Good”, he replies as he holds her tighter against him and leans on the back of the sofa.

Time seems to slow down and they lean slowly backward and end up face to face. She’s in his lap, one leg almost on the other side of his body, her hands on his shoulder, his hands on her back and she rises up slowly; that is one position he’d be happy to be in for the rest of his life. No matter how long it is.

His eyes go down to stare at her lips and he thinks he hears her say his name but he’s not really sure because she’s too close and now that he knows what kissing her and holding her tight feels like, how it feels to have her kiss him; now that he’s opened up to her, he can’t resist any longer. And they’re kissing again and he’s not sure if he was the one to lean in first or if she was but it doesn’t matter anymore. As long as they stay together.

\--------------------------------------

Maddie opens her eyes slowly when the pressure in her blade becomes too intense. Rolling on her back, she looks around the room, trying to remember where she is. She’s in the lady’s room, the tall woman with blond hair who’s Pete friend. No, she remembers, his name is Frank now. He’s still Pete but he’s Frank. She thinks Frank is a better name because Pete was the name of that boy at school who pulled her hair once and she didn’t like him one bit. She wonders where School Pete might be now. Doe he still have his parents?

She walks around the room, looking at every little thing in it, the books and their titles she can barely read, the shoes in the corner, the clothes on the chair, the cupboard with all the cards on top, the picture of the lady with two friends….She likes this room. She explores further, careful not to make a noise because she knows you’re not supposed to go through people’s stuffs -Mama always told her off for that- but she is too curious. She goes back near the bed and open the drawer of the little table by the bed. There’s a packet of bullets in it.

She had never seen bullets before being with Pete – no, Frank, his name is Frank- but he has quite a lot in his apartment. And guns as well. She wonders if the lady has a gun too. She must have if she is friends with Pete-Frank. She wonders if the friends they’re going to live with in the mountains have guns too. She knows they have kids so she hopes they will be nice.

The pressure in her blade makes itself remembered and, after picking her stuffed bear from the bed, she walks to the door, hesitates before pulling down the knob and stepping out. The lights are dim, it must be early morning.

She suddenly misses her parents so much as she remembers how anytime she would get out of her room, one of them would hear her and come out of their room to see if something was wrong and reassure her or walk her to the bathroom. She waits but no one comes. She wonders if Pete-Frank is sleeping with his friend. Is there an other room in the apartment? She can’t remember.

The pain becomes really uncomfortable – she should have gone to the toilets before dinner like Pete-Frank said but she didn’t and fell asleep before she could-, and she heads to the only other door in the corridor, hoping to find the bathroom. She’s lucky in her search and rushes to the toilets, happy to have her stuffed bear – Polly- with her. She has troubles reaching the sink to wash her hands when she’s done but she manages to not splash too much water or make too much noise. She’s wondering what she should do next when her stomach growls.

Food time. She hopes the Karen lady has nice breakfast. Pete-Frank doesn’t have a really nice breakfast but he says no one has these days but she’s sure it can be nicer than what he does.

This time, she heads for the kitchen, wondering where Pete-Frank and his friend might be. She worries for a second that he might have left like Mama and Papa did. What if he went out and he’s never coming back? What if he became one of these dead people on the news?

Her rising anxiety is settled quickly as she looks to her side in the living room area where the couch is. On it is Pete-Frank, who looks perfectly fine, and his friend. They are asleep and tangled with each other. Pete-Frank has his arms around his friend and one of his hand is in her hair and she has her head on a his shoulder and they look very quiet and calm.

She looks at them for a little while, wondering if it would be okay to sneak in between them and get a hug as well but she doesn’t know if Karen likes hugs or not. Pete-Frank doesn’t mind them but maybe it’s better if she doesn’t do anything now. She walks quietly to the kitchen to find something to calm her stomach and manages to grab a bar of cereal from the counter where it laid in a little box.

She starts to open it but then Pete-Frank moves on the couch and, not wanting to wake him up, she goes back to her room. She hopes he won’t take too long to wake up.

\---------------------------------------

Frank wakes with the sound of a door closing. It’s very soft but it’s so typically Maddie – excruciatingly slow because she doesn’t want to make a noise and instead drags it for ages - that he thinks for a second that he is back in his apartment before the warm body pressed against his reminds him of his current situation. Without opening his eyes, he presses himself against her, not wanting to let go, to leave her warmth and to stand up.

He has troubles truly realizing that after all these days worrying about her she is here, in his arms, safe and sound. He opens his eyes to look at her, marveling at every tiny little detail, remembering how her lips felt against his last night, how her eyes looked at him, all the things they said. How they are together now.

He really doesn’t want to move but the picture of a little girl makes itself more and more present in his mind until he can’t shake it away and has the urge to stand up to go and check up on her. He tries to move slowly, trying not to wake Karen but he is lying between her and the couch – his back isn’t thankful for that- and as soon as he takes his arm off her waist, she starts to move. He freezes as she opens her eyes slowly and rubs them before they are fully open.

“Hey”, he whispers, his voice rough and a little bit stuck in his throat because the world is ending but he’s waking up with Karen Page and she’s hiding her face in his neck, grunting that it’s too early to wake up.

He traces circles down her back, feeling himself drifting back to sleep before remembering Maddie. Karen seems to have followed the same train of thought as she suddenly leans back, her eyes still a bit puffy from sleep, her left cheek read from resting on his arm all night and looking so beautiful it hurts.

She asks “What do kids eat for breakfast? I got nothing.” Her voice is a little raspy but she seems very worried and he can’t help but chuckle.  
“Don’t worry, she’s an easy kid. She’ll eat whatever you got.”  
She hums and holds him closer, putting her face in the crook of his neck again and he wonders if his smell has the same calming effect on her that hers has on him. “I think she’s awake, I heard a door closing.” he says.

Karen disentangle herself from him slowly and he is surprised by how much he misses the contact as soon as it’s gone. “You should check up on her,” she says, “I’ll prepare breakfast while you get her ready.”  
She sits on the edge of the sofa as he sits up and then reaches for him, putting her hand on his shoulder, before bringing it down to his wrist and sliding her fingers between his.

“Good morning, by the way,” she says with a little smile. She leans towards him, hesitates for a second, her eyes questioning him as if to say “Is this ok?”. He holds her hand tighter, brings his hand to her hair to let her know he’s okay with this, that they’re not going to fast and that, yes, yesterday evening is a real thing that happened. He can see the doubt and then the reassurance in her eyes. She closes the distance between them.

Oh, he could do that all day, he really could. Touching her feels like heaven and he prides himself on sensing that she likes touching him too. His mind briefly wonders about what it would be like to go further. But it’s the morning and there’s a little girl waiting in a room next door and also, they have to escape a city filled with zombies. Maybe, hopefully, another time. They break apart, a little breathless and stand up.

Maddie is indeed awake when he gets into the bedroom. He looks over quickly, taking in all the little things that make up Karen’s personal space. Maddie seems to feel quite at home in it as she sits on the bed, playing with her stuffed bear, her face lighting up when he walks into the room.  
“You’re finally awake!”

He sits on the bed with a laugh, “It’s 6 am, Maddie, barely morning. Don’t tell me I’ve overslept.”

She scoots closer to him and he runs a hand through her hair, a wave of affection coming over him for this little girl who came so unannounced in his life and yet without whom he couldn’t imagine making it through. He thinks that in his life the best people have always been the most unexpected, the ones he didn’t even think would look twice at him or existed or could even get along with him. And yet, Karen and Maddie were perfect examples of the contrary. His apocalypse world family.

The girl starts speaking, telling him about how she woke up, “...and I know you’re not supposed to go through people’s thing but Karen’s room has just so many nice things, I couldn’t resist, Pete! She has so many books and that’s just her room, I saw she had many others in the other rooms. Also, she has a really nice necklace over there and a super cool t-shirt on the chair there. I really like the colour. I wish I had one that colour, Pete, I really do. It’s gorgeous. Also, I opened the drawer there and she has bullets in it, does she have a gun, Frank? Do all your friends have guns? Mama and Papa never had a gun, you know. Oh and Karen has really nice cereals bar!”

She talks way too fast and calls him by his two names, which he thinks is really cute since she only learned his real identity yesterday. He’s glad she still trusts him, he’d hate for her to close herself up to him.

“Does she, now? How do you know that?”  
“I went to the bathroom because my tummy was hurting, but it was fine I just had to pee and I didn’t forget to wash my hands, and then I went into the kitchen to eat because I was so hungry and I took one there. And I was you on the couch with her. Is she your girlfriend now, Pete? Uh, sorry, Frank?” She speaks really fast but he’s used to it by now, it means she’s really interest and feeling well.

He smiles at her, “It’s okay, girl, you can call me whatever you want, remember? I’ll know you’re talking to me whichever one you use.”  
She nodds, “Great. That’s very helpful because I was getting a bit confused.”  
“Good.”  
“So, is she?”

She is smiling excitedly at him.  
“What are you talking about?”  
“Karen!” she insists, “Is she your girlfriend?”  
“Oh!”

He feels himself blushing which takes him by surprise because he honesty didn’t think he was still capable of that after all these years. “Uhm, well, it’s very, uh, new so...I don’t know. I guess, yeah, I guess, she is.” He smiles and Maddie hugs him. “That’s really super cool, Frank. I quite like her, I quite really like her, you know?”  
He holds her tight, “Yeah, me too, sweetheart.”  
“So are we going to see your friends now? In their house in the mountains?”  
“Yes, we are. It’s going to be a long trip though so you’ll have to behave, okay? We’re not leaving New-York right now but soon, I promise.”

She understands very well and he takes her off the bed so she can start dressing up. As he gathers her clothes, she asks, “Karen is coming with us, right?”  
“Yes, she is.”  
“And she’ll be staying with you and me now?”  
“Yes, we’re staying together now. All of us.”

The world might be ending but his own world isn’t, it’s rebuilding itself again, and right now, that’s good enough.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you've enjoyed this <3  
> You can find me on tumblr @iamacolor


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